


Christmases of Reggie's Past

by Kaychan87



Series: Unfinished Business [2]
Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: All things Christmas, Baking, Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Music, Christmas Party, Christmas Presents, Christmas Vacation, Christmas traditions, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Reggie Needs a Hug (Julie and The Phantoms), School Dances, Star Wars References, chosen family, one sided crush, snowflakes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-10
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:42:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 12,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28002594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaychan87/pseuds/Kaychan87
Summary: Memories of all the Christmases Reggie spent with his childhood friend Lucy before he became a ghost in 2020. COMPLETE!A Holiday spin off of "Unfinished Business", a Reggie x OFC story.
Relationships: Alex/Original Female Character (One Sided), Bobby | Trevor Wilson/Original Female Character(s), Julie Molina's Mother/Ray Molina, Luke Patterson & Alex & Reggie & Bobby & Original Female Character(s), Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms)/Original Female Character(s), Reggie Peters (Julie and The Phantoms)/Original Female Character(s)
Series: Unfinished Business [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2050512
Comments: 1
Kudos: 13





	1. 1. December  1983

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reggie tracks down Lucy on Christmas Day in order to make sure Santa Claus made good on his one promise to the young boy

Reggie raced up the front lawn of the Meyersons' home. He'd just finished tearing open his Christmas presents and wanted to make sure Santa had come for Lucy too. His new friend had been sad that she wasn't going to have snow to play in and then had been afraid Santa wouldn't know where to leave her presents because she wasn't at her home. So when Reggie'd gone to see Santa at the mall, he explained everything to the man in red and gotten a promise from him. Lucy had still been worried when Reggie'd told her about Santa's promise, though, so Reggie had to make sure he kept it.

"Lucy! Lucy! It's Christmas!" the five year yelled as he banged his fists on the Meyersons' front door. He didn't stop until the door opened and he almost hit Mrs. Meyerson. "Did he come? Did Santa come? 'Cause he promised Lucy would get her presents here!" Reggie rushed out breathlessly.

"Do you want to come see?" Mrs. Meyerson asked. She stepped aside to let the boy in, shaking her head as he stumbled to get his shoes off and dash toward the living room.

"Lucy!" the boy exclaimed as he practically jumped on his friend. She was sitting cross legged on the floor, surrounded by piles of torn wrapping paper.

"He came! He came!" the girl exclaimed excitedly as Reggie hugged her as tight as he could.

"I told you!" Reggie almost shouted in her ear. "Santa never lies! Ever!"

Lucy hugged him back. "We have a present for you!" she told him. Releasing the boy, Lucy crawled under the tree and returned seconds later with a wrapped box. She shoved it into Reggie's hands, grinning a toothy grin. "Open it!"

Reggie ripped the paper off and his jaw dropped. "It's Han Solo!" he exclaimed as he stared at the action figure. He'd broken his over the summer. He'd meant to ask Santa for a new one but he'd forgotten. Making sure Lucy got presents had been his goal. "Oh! Here!" Reggie exclaimed after a moment of staring lovingly at his new toy. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a tangled mess of ribbon and dry pasta and pipe cleaners, doing his best to shape it quickly. "It's a snowflake 'cause there's no snow here."

"Wow," Lucy breathed as she cradled the crafted item in her hands. "I love it!"

"Breakfast is ready, Lucy, Reggie. Go wash up quickly!" Mrs. Meyerson called from the kitchen.

"Race you!" Lucy yelled, scrambling to get up first. Reggie set aside his new Han Solo and ran off after Lucy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this became a thing because it's my favourite holiday season. Filled with many of my head cannons, including ages and timeline.
> 
> To make canon moments (Luke leaving home at Christmas) and my thoughts line up, I played around with ages since they are not confirmed (yet).
> 
> So, in this series Bobby is the oldest, then Luke and Lucy. I imagine Alex and Reggie as a calender year younger than them. Although their birthdays won't be mentioned, I also imagine that Luke and Lucy have late in the year birthdays (Oct-Novish), with Reggie having a late winter/early spring birthday (Feb-Marchish), and Alex being some time either before or after Reggie, but definitely before July.


	2. December 1984

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens two hyper active children play Star Wars in a room filled with breakable Christmas decorations? Hijinks. All the hijinks.

"Die rebel scum!" Lucy shouted as she jumped up on the couch, swinging a red painted gift wrap tube wildly. Several of her wild swings were blocked by a green painted tube. "Why am I a Sith Lord again? Why can't I be the Jedi now?" she demanded after losing her grip on the tube and it went rolling across the living room floor.

"Because I can't be the bad guy! I'm the smuggler-slash-jedi and you didn't want to be Leia," answered Reggie as he reached down to pick up his friend's homemade weapon.

"We need more kids," pouted Lucy. She loved playing with Reggie; he was like a brother to her but better. Her friends back home had older siblings who were usually mean to them but Reggie was always nice. He liked all the things Lucy liked and he lived right next to her Nana and Grandpa's so she could go play any time she wanted.

But sometimes when they played, they definitely needed more people for parts.

"Aw c'mon Luce. Just be Vader one more time? Please?" Reggie asked.

"Fine," huffed Lucy before she jumped off the couch to retrieve her lost lightsaber. Once it was in hand, she jumped at Reggie and launched into a frantic series of attacks on him with the cardboard weapon.

Reggie tried to block the attacks as he backed away from Lucy, laughing the whole time.

"Surrender!" Lucy laughed as she bonked him on the head.

"No!" He jumped to the side when Lucy tried to hit him again, sticking his tongue out at her. He was about to tease her for being slow when a crash stopped the two children in their tracks.

Lucy and Reggie stared at each other, eyes wide in terror, before glancing at the broken snow globe on the floor. "Reggie," whispered Lucy.

Whispering back, Reggie murmured, "Uh oh."

"Run!" Lucy instructed as she dropped her cardboard lightsaber and made a mad dash for the stairs with Reggie on her heels.

The two of them never saw their homemade lightsabers again after that day.


	3. December 1985

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reggie learns a new holiday skill

"You've never baked cookies before?!" Lucy practically screeched. She and Reggie were laying on her bed, neither of them sure of what they had wanted to do that day, so they had decided to talk about things they did for Christmas when they weren't hanging out.

"No one at home bakes. Mom always buys things from the bakery or you bring me cookies," Reggie replied with a shrug. He felt the mattress shift as Lucy sat up. "What?" he asked as she stared at him.

"You should have said something!" Lucy insisted as she climbed over his legs and off the bed. "Come on!" She tugged at his arm until he rolled off the bed as well.

He let Lucy pull him out of her room and toward the stairs. "What are we doing?" he asked as he carefully made his way down the stairs with Lucy. She just shushed him as she continued pulling Reggie along, not stopping until they were in the kitchen. "What are we doing?" Reggie asked again as they stopped and Lucy released him.

"Nana! Can we help you bake cookies?" Lucy asked loudly as her grandmother moved around the kitchen.

The older woman stopped what she was doing and turned to face her granddaughter and the boy she had come to love like a grandson. "I thought you were too busy to help today?" Mrs. Meyerson asked with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes.

"Reggie's never baked cookies! Like, ever!" exclaimed Lucy.

Mrs. Meyerson's gaze settled on Reggie. "Is that so?"

Reggie nodded. "My mom can't bake," he confessed.

"Would you like to help?"

Reggie looked surprised at how sincere both Mrs. Meyerson and Lucy looked about wanting his help. "I can really help?" he asked quietly.

"Of course you can. If I teach you, then you can replace Lucy. She eats more than she makes," replied the older woman. Her tone was light and playful again as she spoke about Lucy. "And one day the two of you can take over and let this old girl rest!"

"You're not old, Nana!" Reggie and Lucy insisted at the same time.

"Grab some aprons," instructed Mrs. Meyerson as she went back to getting out ingredients for cookies. 

Once Reggie was properly outfitted in an apron, he was whisked away by Mrs. Meyerson and introduced to the world of making gingerbread cookies. He never really got to spend any time with his own grandmothers. One had passed away when he was a baby and the other lived across the country in Florida. At home he always felt like his parents were too busy or too tired to let him help them in the kitchen, so he tried to stay out of the way. Everything was different at the Meyersons'. Lucy was always in the kitchen with her nana or sometimes Reggie found her in the garage with her grandpa. In the summers, they sometimes went out with her Aunt Elise to different places when she worked. Even Lucy's parents, who weren't even together, seemed to like being around each other and made time to do things with Lucy and always invited Reggie along. Even at his age he could clearly see how vastly different his home life was from Lucy's. He was sure his parents loved him but neither of them seemed to really know how to show him. He wished he could show them how the Meyersons were together and maybe they could try to be like that with him.

"You are my new favourite helper in the kitchen," Mrs. Meyerson told Reggie once all the cookies were finished. She crouched down and used her apron to wipe a smudge of flour from his cheek. "You come over any time and I will teach you all my recipes."

"Can I… can I come even when Lucy is gone?" he asked hopefully. He thought for sure she would dismiss the idea as silly and tell him no. So when she just smiled cheerfully at him and told him how much she would love that, Reggie felt so overwhelmed he thought he might cry. "Thank you, Nana."

Mrs. Meyerson smiled and dropped a kiss on top of Reggie's head before ruffling his dark hair. "Don't tell Lucy, but you're my favourite," the woman whispered conspiratorially.

Reggie couldn't stop from smiling the rest of the night.


	4. December 1986

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reggie brings Luke and Alex to the Meyersons' to introduce them to Lucy, but things don't go as planned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The chapter brought to you by "Last Christmas", specifically the Darren Hayes cover.

" _ Last Christmas I gave you my heart but the very next day you gave it away! This year, to save me from tears I'll give it to someone special!" _

The sounds of off key singing floated out the open front door of the Meyersons' house as Reggie trekked up the front steps. His two best friends trailed behind him, wincing when Reggie wasn't looking.

"I thought you said your friend was cool," complained Luke as the singing continued.

"Lucy's the coolest girl ever. The only cool girl," Reggie confirmed as he knocked on the door.

"Dude. She's singing mushy Christmas songs," Luke replied.

"Badly," added Alex with another wince.

"Be nice, please," pleaded Reggie as they waited for the door to open. When it did, Reggie grinned from ear to ear at the sight of Lucy. "Hi Luce! Wanna come to the beach with us?"

Lucy just glared hard at Reggie. "I'm not cool enough for your stupid friends. Go away!" she told him before slamming the front door closed in Reggie's face.

Reggie turned to face Luke and Alex, completely surprised by what had happened. He barely registered the looks of shame on his two friends' faces as his crumpled suddenly. "Oh."

"Are you okay Reg?" Alex asked as Reggie made his way back down the front steps.

"Let's just go," he said dejectedly. He hated that Lucy had gotten hurt by his idea to finally introduce her to Alex and Luke. He'd been so excited that he'd written her a letter asking if she wanted to meet them over Christmas break. He'd gotten her reply letter and thought everything would be cool. He'd spent the last few weeks of school practically bouncing off the walls with excitement much to the chagrin of everyone around him.

"No way. She's gonna apologize for slamming a door in your face!" Luke stated before marching up the steps and banging on the door until it opened again. "Look, kid, you don't get to be a jerk to Reggie!" he seethed.

"Luke, shut up!" hissed Alex.

"Um hi Mrs. Meyerson," Reggie squeaked.

Luke blinked and finally really looked at the person who opened the door. He turned red before stammering an apology at the older woman in front of him.

"It's not me you owe an apology too," she told Luke as she wiped her hands on her apron. "Open windows work both ways, young man."

Luke's face went from red to white in an instant as he was admonished. "We're very sorry, ma'am," Alex said from where he stood next to Reggie.

Mrs. Meyerson nodded at Alex before she stepped back and motioned for them to enter. "Well, come inside then. Maybe you can get Lucy to stop abusing the gingerbread dough."

"It's gingerbread day?!" Reggie asked before springing forward. He stopped at the doorway and turned to look at Luke and Alex. "Nana's recipe is totally rad!"

"'Nana'?" croaked Luke.

"Yes. You may also call me 'Nana'. No more of that 'ma'am' nonsense," insisted Mrs. Meyerson as she motioned for the three boys to hurry up. Alex nudged Luke inside after Reggie. "Reggie will show you to the kitchen."

"That's the Nana you always talk about?" Luke asked in a whisper as Reggie led them to the back of the house.

"She's great, right?" replied Reggie.

"She's not the sweet, little old lady you described!" Luke hissed as they stopped in the doorway to the kitchen. None of them moved as they watched Lucy angrily slam a wooden rolling pin into a mound of brown dough. "Yikes," breathed Luke.

All three boys jumped as Lucy levelled a glare at them. "Go. Away. Reginald."

Reggie shook his head. "Nana said we could come in."

"I'm mad at you."

"But Luce!" Reggie tried to protest.

"Just because we're idiots doesn't mean you can take it out on Reggie!" Luke spoke up, some of his earlier anger returning. He knew how hard Reggie had it and there was no way he was going to let someone who claimed to be his friend treat him badly, too.

Alex sighed before pushing Luke out of his way. "What Luke means is we're sorry we made fun of your singing. It was just us, not Reggie," the blond told Lucy as he approached her. "We'll go away but forgive Reggie." The blond's hands began to twitch as Lucy stared him down, so he began to play with the hem of his shirt. He hated being stared at like that but the idea of something he did hurting Reggie upset him more. He wished he had his drumsticks to work out some of the nervous energy running through him as he waited for Lucy to respond.

Finally the girl huffed a sigh before setting the rolling pin down. "Whatever. But if you stay, you better make yourself useful. Gingerbread doesn't bake itself," sassed Lucy. She took her apron off and tossed it at Alex. "I think you'll need it more than me." Reggie rushed up and hugged Lucy before he joined Alex at the table, leaving Lucy and Luke to stare at each other.

"I'll teach you about good music," Luke told her unapologetically.

"I know all the words to  _ Last Christmas _ , so you better be nice," Lucy threatened in reply.

"I double dog dare you," Luke taunted before going to join Alex and Reggie. 


	5. December 1987

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things that happens when you leave a group of 9 and 10 year olds unsupervised at Christmas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by my daughter's newfound love of Dolly Parton (Featured song: Hard Candy Christmas)

"Do we have to listen to this song again?" Luke groaned as Lucy sang Wham!'s  _ Last Christmas _ to herself as she cleaned. Her father had offered to pay her and her friends to help him decorate for a wrap turned Christmas party he was hosting to celebrate his latest movie being completed.

“Why are you being such a Grinch?” Lucy asked. She turned to face Luke with her hands on her hips in annoyance.

Luke rolled his eyes at her. “Your music just sucks.”

Narrowing her eyes at Luke, Lucy began another holiday song. “ _ I'll be fine and dandy, Lord, it's like a hard candy Christmas. I'm barely getting through tomorrow but still I won't let sorrow bring me way down. _ ” 

“You made her break out the Dolly. You’re in for it now, Luke,” Alex said as he came by with a box of decorations for the tree.

“How is this my fault?” demanded Luke.

“Well, you do pick on her a lot,” supplied Reggie as he joined Alex at the tree.

“And you act like you’re the king of music,” added Lucy. She passed Luke some ornaments for the mantle the two of them were working on. “Just ‘cause you don’t like it doesn’t mean it sucks.”

“But country?” whined Luke as he set the knick knacks up.

“I don’t mind country,” Reggie stated.

Luke rolled his eyes. “Not helping, Reg.”

“What? I think the banjo would be rad to play!” insisted Reggie.

“And you and Luce can be the Sonny and Cher of country music. Those fans won’t know she can’t sing,” continued Luke. He grabbed a few more ornaments only for Lucy to smack his arm. “Ow! Hey!”

“I bet you can’t pick a better Christmas song,” she challenged.

“If I do, I get all of Nana’s cookies,” Luke accepted.

“Deal.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, this was the only chapter that I had no idea for. Hopefully it's not awful lol


	6. December 1988

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucy and Reggie start a new tradition together

“I can’t believe we’re getting to go see a movie by ourselves! Your Aunt is the coolest,” Reggie said as he and Lucy walked through the mall toward the theatre.

“We’re totally grown up now,” Lucy beamed. For the first time ever, Lucy and Reggie had asked to go watch a movie together at the theatre instead of sitting at home and watching an old movie on tape.

“So what are we gonna go see?”

Lucy shrugged. “Whatever movie kids can see alone? I guess we should have looked at the paper before we left?”

Reggie burst out laughing at his friend. “And I’m the dork?” Lucy nudged him with her shoulder. Reggie nudged her back with a huge grin on his face. “So, we’re gonna do this all the time now, right?”

“Shove each other around the mall?”

“Wow,” teased Reggie.

Lucy nudged him again. “Don’t say it, Reggie!”

“You say it all the time!” pointed out the young boy.

“Because clearly you are a dork, Reginald.”

“So are you, Lucy!” 

Lucy turned so she was walking backwards, smiling just as brightly as Reggie was. “Let’s do this every Christmas. We’ll be two dorks going to see the dorkiest movie we can find. Deal?”

Reggie nodded at his friend. He was incredibly thankful to have her in his life, especially at the holidays.Christmases in his home weren’t always the most joyous but being welcomed as part of Lucy’s family always made him feel like everything would turn out right. He loved their traditions and couldn’t wait to start another one with her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short and dialogue heavy, but I was going for silly interactions between them.
> 
> Also, for those curious, my head cannon is that they went to see Oliver & Company because it was released in '88.


	7. December 1989

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reggie and Lucy continue their holiday traditions while still managing to discover new things about each other.

“That was such a sappy movie,” complained Reggie as he and Lucy exited the theatre. He and Lucy had just sat through  _ The Little Mermaid _ , the dorkiest family movie that was playing at the local movie theatre that weekend. “I’m so glad the guys didn’t join us.”

“Why? Are you embarrassed?” questioned Lucy as she tossed her empty popcorn bag in the garbage bin at the exit.

“Never,” Reggie insisted, “but you know how Luke gets.”

“The music snob.” 

“Worse since he got that guitar for music class,” chuckled Reggie. He opened the door and held it open for Lucy. He would have gone to see the Disney film with Lucy whether Luke and Alex had joined or not. It had meant a lot more to Lucy to see it than she let on. She had loved watching movies like  _ Cinderella _ and  _ Sleeping Beauty _ when they were younger as much as he loved the  _ Star Wars _ trilogy.

“We should go caroling outside his house and just sing Wham! songs,” Lucy suggested with an impish grin.

Reggie let out a loud laugh at the idea. “We’ll have to force Alex to come, too.”

Lucy snorted and nudged Reggie as they walked towards the food court where they were supposed to meet her grandparents. “Alex’d die from embarrassment. It would be kinda cute to see.”

Reggie raised an eyebrow at Lucy. “‘Cute to see’?” he parroted though his tone was more horrified than Lucy’s.

Lucy just shrugged and looked away from Reggie, knowing he wouldn’t understand at all. He was a boy and he was a few months younger than her, after all. There were just some things boys his age could never understand. “Alex is kinda cute, okay? You wouldn’t understand.”

Reggie just rolled her eyes. “I understand. You’re turning into a real girl now. Princess movies and lip gloss and glitter and butterflies,” he stated knowingly.

It was Lucy’s turn to look horrified at his comment. “That’s stupid, Reg! When have you ever seen me do anything with glitter and butterflies?! And my lips get chapped back home! I need that tube of  _ Lip Smackers _ !” she stated indignantly.

“Uh huh. You need your lips to smell like strawberries ‘cause it’s cold and not ‘cause you wanna kiss Alex. Whatever you say, Luce,” continued Reggie.

Lucy’s cheeks turned bright red. “You’re such a child, Reginald. I don’t think I’m gonna buy you a Christmas gift this year,” she huffed before picking up her pace.

Reggie just continued to chuckle. “That’s okay. I won’t give you your new snowflake.”

“Hey!”

“I’ll send Alex some mistletoe from you though!” Reggie added before he dashed away from Lucy so she couldn’t hit him. She might have been turning girly on Reggie, but he knew she still hit pretty hard when she wanted to.

“You’re so dead!” the girl shouted in outrage before chasing Reggie through the mall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are at the half way mark for this little holiday saga! I just want to say thank you to everyone who has dropped in to give this a chance and for all the kudos from you guys! You're all the best!


	8. December 1990

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After having the guys join them on their annual movie trip, Lucy bonds with the boys.

“Dude, I can’t believe you cried,” sighed Luke as he flopped back on Lucy’s bed. The four of them had just gotten back to the Meyersons’ home after going to see a movie together.

“I don’t see you giving Lucy a hard time about this,” grumbled Alex as made himself comfortable on Lucy’s desk chair.

“‘Cause Luce cries at every movie. And she’s a gir - Ow! Hey!” Luke exclaimed as he was smacked in the face with a pillow.

“Finish that sentence and I’ll break out the Wham! and Dolly Parton, Patterson,” the girl in question said from where she stood above him, hands on her hips.

“Dude, you are a girl. You’ve got girl parts,” he told her matter-of-factly as he motioned towards her chest with his hand.

“The word you’re looking for is ‘breasts’,” Lucy reminded him, smirking when she saw Luke’s face turn red at the word. Her entire relationship with the budding guitarist was built around teasing and their mutual love for Reggie. Lucy didn’t see any reason why it should change just because she’d hit puberty but she also wasn’t going to let him off the hook for making comments about girls and crying.

“Dude, you’re telling me you weren’t the least bit sad about what happened to Edward?” Alex asked.

“Honestly, I wasn’t paying attention. Not enough music,” confessed the brown haired teen.

“Not everything’s a musical,” Lucy said with an eye roll as she sat on the bed next to Luke’s legs. 

“Speaking of music, what’s taking Reggie so long? He lives next door. It doesn’t take this long to get stuff from his place,” Luke asked to change the subject. While he, Alex, and Lucy had gone straight for her room, Reggie had told them he needed to grab something from his room before joining them.

Alex just shrugged. “What’s he getting, anyway?” the blond asked Lucy.

The teenaged girl just shrugged back. “Why are you asking me?”

“I mean, you live here kinda.”

“And you guys spend every day together. Pretty sure you’d know better,” countered Lucy.

Luke sat up so he could see his two friends better. His expression had shifted to one full of concern. “Was his dad’s car in the driveway? Do you think he walked in on another fight?”

“I.. I don’t think it was,” Alex murmured before getting up from his seat. He paced over to Lucy’s bedroom window and craned his neck in every direction in hopes of getting a better look at Reggie’s house.

“We should go get him,” Lucy said as she scrambled off her bed. Luke was right behind her when the bedroom door opened and Reggie walked in carrying a tray piled high with cookies.

“Look what Nana made for us!” he exclaimed cheerfully before he noticed the expressions on his friends’ faces before giving them all a confused look. “What?”

“What took you so long, man?” demanded Luke.

Reggie blinked at him. “I was getting cookies from Nana.”

“Didn’t you go home?” inquired Alex.

“Yeah. I had to grab Luce’s gift to put under her tree,” answered Reggie as he moved into the room and sat with the tray of cookies. “And then I ran into Nana and we started talking. Did you know she joined a book club?”

Luke opened his mouth to tell Reggie off for worrying them when Lucy’s grandmother appeared in the doorway with another tray of drinks. “Close your mouth dear, you look like a fish struggling for air,” the older woman said to him. Luke’s mouth snapped shut while Alex, Reggie, and Lucy all snickered at him. “And what did you do to the sleeves of that shirt?” she continued with a ‘tsk’ at Luke’s fashion choices.

“Thanks Nana,” Lucy said as she went to take the tray from her grandmother.

“Will Luke and Alex be joining us for dinner tonight?”

Lucy glanced over her shoulder at them. “Does dinner require shirt sleeves?” she asked, shooting a smirk at Luke. “I bet I have a top Luke could borrow if it does.”

“Make sure it’s very, very pink,” Alex said.

“Ha, ha you two.”

Mrs. Meyerson just smiled. “You two are welcome to stay if your parents don’t mind. I’m going to be baking pies afterward,” she said before she left the four of them on their own.

“You hear that boys? The best desserts in Hollywood are on the menu tonight.”

“I thought we were going to practice tonight?” Alex asked.

“Bro, it’s Nana’s pies,” Luke deadpanned, earning an eye roll from Alex. He took the tray of drinks from Lucy. “Better get me that very, very pink shirt Luce. I’m never leaving.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Edward mentioned would be Edward Scissorhands


	9. December 1991

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reggie and Lucy reach a turning point in their relationship over the Christmas holiday

"I still think  _ The Addams Family _ would have been a better movie," Reggie complained loudly from where he sat. They two of them had caught an early showing of  _ My Girl _ in what had become a tradition of sorts for them.

"I'm sorry, okay?" huffed Lucy as she dropped down in a chair across from him. She sat a paper Cinnabon bag on the table between them and nudged it towards Reggie. The treat was a peace offering of sorts for making him sit through  _ My Girl  _ instead of  _ The Addams Family _ . "I got you two Cinnabons to make up for it."

"No pizza?"

"I'm taking back that bass," hissed Lucy.

"No take backs!" Reggie exclaimed as he quickly yanked the Cinnabon bag closer to him.

Lucy just folded her arms over her chest and looked petulant. "Fine, I'm gonna keep your present Reginald."

Reggie stopped mid-bite and stared at his friend in horror. "Aw, c'mon Luce," he said around a mouthful of Cinnabon. He swallowed quickly before nudging the paper bag back toward her. "We can just save pizza for later. You're gonna come see us play tonight, right?" Reggie asked hopefully. Lucy had been gone for months and had yet to see Reggie play music in the band he and their other two friends had formed. 

"Am I even allowed to go to a school's winter dance if I don't go there?" Lucy asked. Her mom had been homeschooling Lucy and she'd never gone to an actual school dance before.

"Why wouldn't you be? You're coming with me," answered Reggie as he devoured his food.

"With you?" Lucy echoed. She could feel her face growing warm at the idea of going to a school dance with Reggie. She'd spent the last three and a half months agonizing over the fact that they had kissed during her summer visit until she finally let herself admit to having a huge crush on Reggie. She'd known him practically her whole life and he'd been accepted as part of the family. She hadn't ever thought of him as anything more than the adorable dork next door, her best friend.

And then her dad had decided to gift Reggie with a brand new bass over the summer - he'd called it a really late birthday gift - and had sent Lucy to deliver it to the boy. She'd seen Reggie cry before but never exuberant tears of happiness. And then she was swept up in his arms and he had kissed her right there in front of Alex and Luke.

"Well yeah, you can help us get set up. Like a roadie." 

Lucy's face fell but she carefully plastered a smile back on it before Reggie could notice. "Oh. Yeah. Sure." She finished off her food quickly though her appetite had faded quickly. "I'm gonna head out Reg."

"Um yeah. Be ready for six?" Reggie nodded, suddenly sounding nervous.

His voice had risen slightly and he was looking everywhere but at Lucy, his fingers drumming out a beat on the table top. Lucy frowned but stopped herself from reaching out to him like she would have. "Yeah," Lucy murmured instead.

"Cool. Um, you have a dress or whatever you're gonna wear, right?" Reggie continued.

"I didn't think roadies wore dresses to gigs."

"We're not playing the whole dance so maybe we could… I mean, can you save a dance? For me? If… if you wanna dance with me. I can't actually dance and I'll probably step on your feet a lot," stammered Reggie, his fingers picking up speed. He hesitated while Lucy just stared at him in surprise. He'd probably screwed up asking her to dance and she was probably trying to figure out how to say so nicely. Reggie knew there was no way she actually like-liked him but he had been thinking about her constantly since he had kissed her in the summer. He'd never kissed a girl before and he hadn't exactly planned on kissing Lucy. But he had and he kind of wanted to do it again.

"Am I your roadie or your date?" Lucy demanded. 

"Both?" Reggie practically squeaked. He reached into his hoodie pocket and set a small, hastily wrapped box on the table. "I… I got your present, too. Maybe you'll wear it tonight?"

Lucy blushed but took the box and carefully unwrapped it. She opened the box and found a necklace with a snowflake charm. "Reggie, it's so pretty," she said as she picked up the chain.

"So will you wear it? And be my date? And help us set up?" Reggie asked hopefully.

"Ugh. Fine. Stop giving me puppy dog eyes, you dork," Lucy groaned in teasing exasperation.

Reggie grinned. "You're gonna be the prettiest roadie in the history of roadies!"

"Six o'clock sharp or you forfeit your gift!" Lucy stated as she slipped on the necklace and grabbed her stuff. She balled up the gift wrap and tossed it at Reggie, laughing when it bounced off his forehead and landed back on the table.

"That's not fair Luce!" Reggie called as he watched his friend skip away. He gathered his own stuff and hurried off. He couldn't wait to tell Alex and Luke about his afternoon.


	10. December 1992

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bobby's first holiday season as part of the band

Lucy watched from backstage as Sunset Curve played their take on Christmas classics for their classmates. For the second year in a row, she found herself in a school that was not hers for a Winter formal dance. Even though Sunset Curve had added a fourth member over the summer, they still had sent Reggie to beg her to be their roadie again. Not that she minded; it gave her a chance to spend time with her friends and listen to them play. “You guys are awesome!” she cheered as they filed off stage to take a break.

“Wait 'til you hear our new stuff,” Luke said as he set his guitar on its stand.

“Yeah, we’re not just a cover band anymore!” added Reggie as he set his bass in the stand next to Luke’s guitar.

“That’s great!” gushed Lucy before hugging Reggie. Reggie grinned widely and returned the hug. “How long are you guys taking a break for?”

Luke shrugged before looking at Alex and Bobby. “Ten to fifteen?”

“I’m good with that,” Alex answered while Bobby nodded. “I’m gonna grab some punch or something,” the blond drummer added before he slipped away.

“Dude, grab me one!” Luke called after him. Alex’s reply was drowned out by the music coming from the sound system, but Luke rolled his eyes and followed after the drummer.

“You want some, too?” Reggie asked Lucy. 

When she nodded, he told her he’d be right back and ran off after Luke and Alex. She flashed an awkward smile at Bobby, who returned it. Lucy liked him well enough but she didn’t know him as well as Reggie, Alex, or Luke. She knew he and Luke were in the same music class and that was how he’d been brought into the band but she had never had the chance to talk with him one on one.

“So, are you and Reggie dating?” the rhythm guitarist asked, breaking the silence that had fallen between them.

Lucy could feel her cheeks burning as she stared at Bobby. “Me and Reggie? No! We’re not! We’re just… Reggie’s my best friend and…”

“So he won’t mind if I ask you to dance?” continued Bobby.

“You wanna dance with me?” 

Bobby nodded. “You got all dressed up for a dance.”

“I’m flattered, but Reg’ll be back soon,” Lucy said.

Bobby raised an eyebrow. “You’re not dating him, but you want to.”

Lucy just shrugged. “I just don’t really know you well yet. And maybe, yeah, a little. About wanting to date Reggie. I’m just gonna wait for him and then maybe I’ll dance.” She looked everywhere but at Bobby. She’d never really told anyone before about her growing crush on Reggie. Things were confusing enough, though, without her acting on them. She would rather have him as a best friend than risk a complete break up with him.

“I won’t say anything,” Bobby told her. “But if you change your mind, you know where I’ll be.”

“You’ll be on the stage, shredding on the guitar,” Luke stated as he appeared backstage with two cups in his hands. He handed one to Bobby as Reggie and Alex appeared as well.

“Change your mind about what?” Reggie asked as he handed Lucy her cup of punch.

“Bobby asked me to dance but I don’t wanna take him away from you three that long,” Lucy replied as she accepted the drink.

“Please, keep him,” pleaded Luke. “Then I have an excuse not to go out there and play that stupid song you like.” He flashed Lucy a playful smirk.

Lucy narrowed her eyes at Luke as she took a sip of her punch. She knew he was teasing but he had sworn to her he would play  _ Last Christmas _ in exchange for her helping them out. “Don’t make me go find Reggie a banjo, Luke,” the teenaged girl threatened.  Luke muttered something that sounded vaguely like “good luck with that” under his breath before he took a sip of his own drink. 

Alex smiled at Lucy. “There’s a banjo in the music room.”

“Traitor!”

“I can play some Dolly on the banjo now,” added Reggie with a grin aimed at Luke.

The lead guitarist just rolled his eyes at his friends before setting his drink down. “Better get back out there before they mob the stage boys.” He grabbed his guitar, ignoring the protests from Reggie about their break not being anywhere near over, and headed back onto the stage.

Lucy gave her dejected friend another quick hug. “Go show’em how awesome you are,” she told him before gently pushing him towards his waiting bass and the stage.

Once the whole band was back on stage, Luke grabbed his mic stand. “This one goes out to a super obnoxious friend of mine,” he spoke to the crowd though he glanced backstage at Lucy and winked at her before they began to play the first chords of  _ Last Christmas _ .


	11. December 1993

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sunset Curve and Lucy get to spend Christmas up north while on location with Mr. Meyerson

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was inspired by Sam Palladio's song "Bring the Snow"

"Dude, we get this whole cabin to ourselves?" Luke asked as he stood outside a log cabin that was bigger than his house. He couldn’t believe that he was spending his Christmas somewhere so fancy, but there he was three days before the holiday at some chalet up north.

"Well, I mean, my dad will be around when he isn't on set," answered Lucy. Her father was filming on location for his latest movie and had invited the band on the trip so that Lucy wasn't completely alone for the holiday. Her aunt and grandparents had gone to the east coast and her mother was on assignment until the new year.

"This is gonna be so sweet, boys," Luke continued, dropping an arm around Alex's and Reggie's shoulders.

"It's going to be cold," complained Bobby.

"You can stay in the cabin, Bobby," Lucy pointed out as she pulled out the key her father had given her before leaving for the movie set.

"It'll be fun, having a white Christmas," Reggie said as he followed Lucy inside once the door was open.

"Woah, look at all the decorations!" Alex said as he came in behind Reggie and Lucy. The entire main floor of the cabin was decorated to the nines with Christmas décor.

"Too bad the tree is already done," sighed Lucy. "That's always been my favourite part."

"We can cut another down for your room, Luce," offered Luke as he pushed by his friends to bounce on the couch.

"Have you ever cut a tree down before?" Alex asked incredulously.

"Have you ever held a saw before?" added Bobby as he shut the door.

Luke just shrugged at them. "Can't be that hard."

"Watch out guys. Lumberjack Luke is here," teased Lucy. She turned to face Alex, Bobby, and Reggie. “So, while Luke is out chopping down pine trees, we can go claim some rooms,” she told them.

“Sounds good,” Bobby said before leading them upstairs while Luke let out a protest and scrambled off the couch.

~*~

Their days passed quickly, filled with laughter and lots of time out in the snow. After they had finally convinced Luke not to try cutting down a pine tree, the band and Lucy dedicated their days to other holiday activities. The day after they had arrived the five of them had gone into town with Lucy’s dad to do some last minute holiday shopping and to get everything they needed for their Christmas day meal. Reggie had even managed to convince them to spend over an hour in a local toy store to “test the merchandise” as he’d put it. They’d returned to the cabin and had somehow managed to convince Bobby to join them in making a small army of snowmen. It had been going fine until someone knocked over one of Luke’s and the singer had started a snowball fight. It had been a blast, though, and the night had ended with them all gathered in the living room with mugs of cocoa where they found a bunch of movies to watch. There had been some playful groans and teasing when Reggie popped  _ A New Hope _ into the VCR with an excited grin. 

The day after that, the guys worked on band stuff while Lucy spent the day baking up a storm. Bobby was the first one to join her in the kitchen, lured away from their band circle by the smell of sugar cookies. It was one of the rare times it was just him and Lucy hanging out and Lucy found she didn’t mind Bobby’s company as much as she thought she would. It didn’t last long, though; once she put the gingerbread in the oven, Reggie was in the kitchen in minutes and that meant Alex and Luke wouldn’t be far behind. Much like the day before, the night ended with Luke starting a food fight and left with them covered in flour and random baking ingredients by the time Mr. Meyerson returned from the film set.

When Christmas Eve was finally upon them, they’d gotten Chinese take out and finished up gift wrapping that they hadn’t gotten to. Of course, that had also resulted in a wrapping paper fight with empty tubes and balls of unused giftwrap flying everywhere.  “How come Luke makes the mess and we’re all left to clean up after him?” grumbled Bobby as he used a broom to pull balls of wrapping paper out from under the couches in the room.

Luke tossed another crumpled wad of paper at Bobby, hitting him in the back of the head. “Bro, you were into it too.”

“Pretty sure we’re all guilty,” chimed in Lucy as she stuck a discarded red bow on Luke’s beanie. She walked over to Reggie and plopped a silver one in his dark hair. The bassist laughed and stuck a gold one on her shoulder before sticking some empty tape rolls in the garbage bag Alex was holding.

“But it was mostly Luke,” confirmed Alex.

“Whatever dude. You’re just mad because I wrap presents better than you,” complained Luke as he walked by with a full trash bag.

Reggie laughed at Alex’s sour expression. “I still did a better job than you,” Alex told Reggie. 

“I never claimed to be a master,” answered Reggie with a shrug.

“Also I usually wrap all his presents for you guys,” Lucy pointed out as she walked over to stick a shiny blue bow on Bobby’s shoulder. The guitarist rolled his eyes at her and Lucy just chuckled. She finally made her way back to Reggie and Alex, sticking a green bow on the drummer. “My gifts to all of you,” she informed them.

Luke just smirked at Lucy and waggled his eyebrows. “Or maybe we’re our gift to you.”

The young woman fanned herself. “Oh my. The gift of a moderately cute boyband. How’d I get so lucky?”

“Who’re you callin’ ‘boy band’?” Luke asked seriously.

“You, Donnie,” Lucy teased before slipping out of the room and into the kitchen with a laugh.

Luke rolled his eyes. “So clever, Luce!” he shouted after her. He rolled his eyes before announcing he was calling it a night. Alex and Bobby weren’t far behind, leaving Reggie alone in the living room.

“Kitchen’s clean,” Lucy announced as she returned. “Where’d the rest of the band go?”  
  
“Bed,” Reggie answered.

Lucy smiled softly at her friend. “You waited for me, Reg?”

“Why wouldn’t I?” he asked sincerely. He grabbed the trash bags the others had left. “Also someone has to put these out in the trash.”

Lucy chuckled and took one of the bags from Reggie. “We can do it together,” she told him as she followed him to the door. They slipped on their shoes in silence and made a mad dash towards the trash cans and back. Once they were back inside, Reggie placed a hand on Lucy’s arm to stop her from going further. “Reggie?”

“I heard you on the phone earlier,” he said softly. Lucy’s face crumpled but she tried to force a smile for him. “Don’t. How’s Nana?”

Lucy melted against Reggie and sighed. “In good spirits, but this is a long shot treatment.”

Reggie just wrapped his arms around her and held her close. “Maybe she’ll get a Christmas miracle,” he whispered, ever the optimist.

“Thank you,” Lucy murmured. “For coming with us. For being here. For convincing the guys to give up valuable band time.”

“It wasn’t hard. Nana’s awesome and we all love her,” Reggie answered. He shifted so his arm was wrapped around Lucy’s shoulders and led her back into the living room. “Hey, how about we pop a cheesy Christmas movie in, make some popcorn and hot chocolate?”

Lucy smiled and nodded. “Sounds good. We can grab some of the cookies, too.”

“The gingerbread!” Reggie practically yelled. Making and eating gingerbread cookies at the Meyersons’ home over the holidays with Lucy was one of his absolute favourite memories.

“You get the snacks and I’ll run up and grab a blanket,” Lucy said as she stopped them by the staircase.

“It’s a date,” Reggie said casually. When he realized what he’d said, though, he started turning red.

“Yeah,” murmured Lucy, blushing just as brightly as Reggie. The two of them stood there, a sudden awkwardness falling over them. Neither was sure what to do or how to break the awkward moment, their confusing and unresolved feelings bubbling up to the surface. Lucy looked up at the ceiling, trying to clear her thoughts. Instead, she let out a soft squeak. “Reggie,” she said, swatting blindly at his arm.

“Yeah?” Lucy motioned for him to lookup and when he did, his blush deepened. Above them was a bundle of green leaves with white berries that definitely had not been there earlier. “Is that…?”

“Mistletoe,” Lucy answered. She shuffled her weight from foot to foot awkwardly as she glanced away from the mistletoe to Reggie. He looked flustered and a little baffled about what was happening. Then he looked at Lucy, nervous and blushing. She expected that she looked the same. They’d kissed a few times before, but there was something different about kissing under the mistletoe on Christmas Eve. “You don’t have to,” she pointed out.

Reggie glanced around as if to make sure they were definitely alone before he shuffled closer to Lucy. “Can I?” he asked. When Lucy nodded ‘yes’, Reggie leaned in and kissed her softly.

Neither of them noticed the blond and brunette high five from the top of the staircase.


	12. December 1994

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Christmas 1994 - the first Christmas Reggie and Lucy share as an official couple, Luke's first Christmas away from home, and the last Christmas before the fateful summer that changed everything for Sunset Curve and their friend Lucy.

"C'mon Reggie, you know you want to see it too!" Lucy pleaded. She had flopped back on her boyfriend's bed and was staring up at the ceiling while he worked on tuning his bass across the room.

"Shouldn't we start seeing grown up movies, Luce?" Reggie replied without looking away from his bass.

Lucy sat upright. "Who are you and what have you done with my boyfriend?" she demanded before catching the grin plastered on his face. Lucy scowled; Reggie could be such a brat sometimes. "You know what? You're right. Let's wait a few more weeks and go see  _ Little Women _ . Date night can wait for an age appropriate movie."

Reggie finally looked up from his bass, a look of horror gracing his features. "Babe, what? No! I was kidding!"

"Babe, stop being a brat and I won't have to be mean," replied Lucy.

"So  _ The Santa Clause _ it is," Reggie said as he made a face at Lucy.

"Yes!" Lucy exclaimed as she hopped off his bed. She closed the distance between Reggie and herself to place a kiss on his cheek.

"I get to pick the movie next year!" Reggie insisted as he went back to tuning his bass. He grinned as he did so, knowing Lucy was rolling her eyes at him. They both knew they would go see whatever kiddy film was released the following year no matter who picked it. He looked up again seconds later when the shrill ringing of the house line sounded from the living room.

"I'll grab it," Lucy offered before she skipped out of his room.

"Thanks Luce!" Reggie called after her. He could hear her voice from the open door though he couldn't make out what she was saying. She came thundering back up the stairs and stopped in the doorway.

"Get your coat, Reg. We gotta go," she told him breathlessly.

Reggie set his bass down, frowning, but grabbed his leather jacket. "What's wrong?" he questioned as he followed Lucy back down the stairs.

"That was Grandpa," she said as she grabbed her purse and slipped her shoes on. "I guess Mrs. Patterson called him in a panic."

"What happened to Luke?" Reggie asked, panicking himself.

"Ran off after a fight with her," answered Lucy as she threw the front door to Reggie's house wide open.

"The studio," was all Reggie said as he locked the door behind them.

"Yeah. I'll get my aunt to drive us," she called as she dashed towards the house next door. Reggie wasn't far behind her and almost crashed into her, failing to realize she'd stopped running.

"Luke!" he exclaimed as he steadied Lucy and himself the best he could.

"Hey guys," the brown haired teen said from where he sat on the Meyersons' front step. He quickly wiped at his face before standing up. "Where's the fire?" he added, trying and failing at sounding nonchalant.

"Your mom already called," Lucy said gently. She tugged Reggie forward until they were standing in front of Luke.

"Of course she did," groaned Luke.

"Dude, what happened?" Reggie asked as he dropped down on the step next to Luke.

"What do you think? She started in on me about the band again and I just lost it."

Reggie wrapped an arm around Luke and gave him a side hug. "I'm sorry, man."

"I'm so over it, Reg. I'm not going back," Luke stated as he sagged against Reggie. "They don't get that making music is a huge deal. We're connecting to so many people and making a huge difference in their lives!"

"You need a place to stay?" offered Lucy from where she stood.

Luke shrugged. "I got stuff at the studio."

Lucy rolled her eyes. "You're gonna crash here tonight. You're already here." She backed away from the boys and grabbed Luke's bike from where it lay on the lawn. She ignored Luke as he protested and began walking the bike into the backyard. 

"This is gonna be the first place they come lookin' for me!" the guitarist called after his friend.

"Good thing we won't be here!" Lucy called back.

"You just invited me to crash here!"

"We're going to the movies! You're just gonna have to come on our date, too!" Lucy stated as she reappeared in the front yard.

"What?" Luke and Reggie said at the same time.

"You," Lucy said as she pointed at her boyfriend, "won't enjoy it otherwise. And you won't have to worry about your folks tracking you down."

Luke scowled; he knew Lucy was right but he wasn't really in the mood for whatever movie they were planning to see. "I'm not gonna be some pathetic third wheel, Luce."

"Geeze Luke, how about a 'thanks for taking me in, Lucy!'?" the young woman fired back. "And who said anything about it being just us three?" Lucy added as she bypassed the two boys to head inside through the front door. Her grandfather kept the phone in the front room, having a strict "no phone calls in the kitchen" policy. "I'm gonna call Alex and Bobby. We'll hit up the movies and then come back here after."

"Bro, tell me it's not some girly movie," Luke pleaded quietly as Lucy slipped inside to make her calls.

~*~

"I can't believe I agreed to sit through that movie," Bobby complained once everyone was back at the Meyersons' place.

"You laughed harder than Reggie did," Lucy said as she entered her room with an armful of snacks and drinks.

"Bobby's too mature now guys. It happens when you get old," Luke pointed out before giving Bobby a wet willy.

"You know, my Grandpa won't mind if you wanna go hang out and do old man stuff together," suggested Lucy as Bobby shoved Luke away with a look of annoyed disgust.

"Ha ha Luce," the slightly older guitarist grumbled.

"You should go, too, Luke," Alex added as Luke sat down on Lucy's bedroom floor.

"Shut up Alex," grumbled Luke. 

"Hey, it's not my fault you're technically older than us," Alex said with a shrug from the bed.

"Luke's never gonna be an old man," Lucy pointed out as she dropped down on the floor next to Luke. "You have to grow up for that!" She laughed as Luke shoved her playfully. She shoved him back before dropping a bag of sour gummy worms in his lap.

"Your birthday is two days after mine," Luke reminded her as he tore open the bag of candy. 

"Are you implying I'm an old man?" Lucy demanded. 

"You're going to be the cutest old man, Babe," Reggie told her with a grin.

"You know what? None of you are getting your Christmas gifts now!" Lucy exclaimed in mock anger. She dumped the rest of the snacks onto Luke's lap, burying the gummy worms.

"Hey, what did I do?" protested Bobby.

"Complained about my choice of movie," Lucy reminded him as she got up. She turned and pointed at Alex. "You! You get a gift because you're cute."

The blond drummer just grinned at the rest of his bandmates in victory. "You're awesome, Luce."

"Brown noser," Luke coughed. Alex rolled his eyes before throwing a pillow from Lucy's bed at him. 

Lucy just shook her head at her friends before slipping out of the room again. She returned ten minutes later with several neatly wrapped gift boxes in her arms. "You guys are lucky you're all cute," she told them as she kicked her bedroom door closed. She handed out the gifts before she dropped back down into her spot between Luke and Bobby. 

"A vegetarian cookbook?" Bobby asked after opening his gift. "Wait, is this autographed?"

"Hold up," Luke said, causing Reggie and Alex to stop what they were doing. "You get Bobby an autographed book and I only get a hat?"

"You needed a new hat. Bobby needed something to give him game," Lucy deadpanned.

"What's wrong with my hat?" protested Luke as he lifted the new one from the gift box. "Oh my god," he said, dropping the hat.

"What is it?" Alex asked. He leaned toward Luke to see what Luke was staring at while Reggie just chuckled. He knee what was in there. Lucy had asked him for his advice on Luke's Christmas gift at least a dozen times. "How did you even manage to pull this off?" he asked as he lifted the autographed CD case out of the gift box.

"I have a dad who knows people. Sometimes that's handy," Lucy replied with a shrug. Lucy watched as Alex finished tearing into his own gift, finding new drumsticks and an autographed CD as well.

"What'd you get Reggie?" Bobby asked the fourth member of Sunset Curve.

The usually boisterous bass player had gone silent, something so unlike him, that all his friends were now staring at him. He had a perfectly surprised expression on his face as he pulled out a wooden frame from the box. The guys moved to crowd around Reggie to see what had rendered him speechless.  "Dude, no way!" Luke said before clamping his hand around Reggie's shoulder. "When did you meet Harrison Ford?"

"Last spring when Luce and I went to Mr. Meyerson's new movie premier. For, like, five seconds. I didn't even know this picture happened!"

"My dad managed to get a copy of the picture for me and I asked him if we could get it signed," Lucy said from where she sat across from him. She had known since they were little that Reggie absolutely adored the Star Wars trilogy and Han Solo. They'd watched it enough times together that she was almost as knowledgeable about them as Reggie was.

"Dude, you have the best girlfriend ever!" Luke said as he gave Reggie's shoulder a shake.

"Still don't understand how you managed it," teased Bobby.

"Babe," Reggie said, ignoring the teasing from his friends to focus all his attention on Lucy.

"It was so worth the millions of phone calls just to see you speechless," chuckled Lucy. 

Reggie shook Luke's hand off his shoulder and closed the difference between Lucy and himself to kiss her soundly on the lips. Lucy wrapped her arms around him and held him close. "Best Christmas yet," he told her.

"Totally."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was actually the first chapter I wrote and what inspired my age head cannons (found in Chapter 1's notes).


	13. December 1995

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucy and Bobby's first Christmas after the deaths of their friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter brought to you by Dan + Shay's "Christmas Isn't Christmas"

Lucy sat curled up in the living room of her father’s home, staring vacantly at the decorated tree in the room. She found herself unable to find any joy in the holiday she used to love. Everything about the holiday felt wrong to her when it should have been her best Christmas to date. Every day since July had been a struggle, her ever growing stomach a hard reminder. But then November had come and her birthday had hit her like a brick wall. She’d been at the Pattersons' two days before for what would have been Luke’s birthday. Guilt ate at Lucy for the part she had played in Luke disappearing from their lives despite having been forgiven by them. From there, everything had rushed at her with blinding speed. Thanksgiving had morphed into the Christmas holidays. All the traditions she had made since her first Christmas in California had crumbled away. She couldn’t bring herself to do any baking or to go see the silliest family film released that year. Bobby had offered to take her, but it felt like a betrayal to Reggie.  _ Toy Story _ would have been exactly the kind of movie Reggie would sit through with a huge grin plastered on his face. There would be no new snowflake for Lucy to add to her collection that year, either, nor would she be able to give Reggie the rare Star Wars collectible she’d found by chance and tucked away. There would be no Christmas concert from the guys; even Bobby couldn’t bring himself to do a solo show. There would be no annoying Luke by singing along loudly and way off key to  _ Last Christmas _ or doing last minute gift wrapping with Alex. And Christmas wouldn’t be spent in the cozy beachfront home that held all her best memories of Reggie and her Nana.

“Luce?”

Bobby’s voice pulled Lucy back from the dark place her mind had been slowly edging towards. “Hey,” she murmured, offering up an exhausted smile. She hadn’t slept well in months despite living in a permanent state of exhaustion since the funerals of her closest friends. She laid a hand on her stomach, knowing the sleepless nights weren’t going to end any time soon for her. 

“How are you feeling?” Bobby asked as he walked over to where she was sitting.

Lucy just shrugged in response. She didn’t really need to vocalize her feelings with Bobby. He’d gone through the same darkness she was still stuck in, even if he was emerging from his grief faster than she was. The most important thing was that he understood. He didn’t coddle her like she was going to shatter if the wrong thing was said. She and Bobby had been each other’s support since that night at the Orpheum. And Rose, the young woman he’d been attempting to pick up, had become a source of comfort for Lucy as well. 

Bobby sat down next to her and offered his bravest smile. “It really sucks,” he said.

“How do we even have Christmas without them? I haven’t celebrated Christmas without Reggie since I was a kid. How do I do any of this?” Lucy asked, gesturing to the Christmas décor around the room before gesturing to her own baby bump. She had gone from being absolutely certain that everything about having a baby would work out to being terrified of what her future held in a matter of hours. She’d had no doubts when she thought that she’d have Reggie to depend on. But he was gone and Lucy’s world was darker without his brightness.

Bobby reached over and took hold of her hand. “We can skip Christmas. Everyone’d understand.”

“I promised Rose I’d go to her party and meet the guy she’s seeing,” Lucy told him.

“Rose will understand, too,” added Bobby. “I know I’m not Reggie, but I’m here, Luce. You, me… We’re not alone, we can do all of this - or only some of this - together.”

Lucy shook her head quickly. “I can’t ask you to do any of this. It’s not your problem,” she tried to protest.

“I need… Lucy, I can’t…” Bobby started, getting choked up each time he tried to explain how much he needed her to get through losing the guys and the band. He wasn’t good at expressing his feelings like Alex and Luke and Reggie had been. He was the cool, aloof one. “You’re the only one who gets this.” He looked up when he felt Lucy squeeze his hand. He hadn’t even realized that he’d been staring off into the distance again as he wrestled with finding the words to express himself to her. He gave her a watery smile as she shifted on the couch until she was leaning into his side, her arm wrapping around his shoulders in an awkward side hug.

“People are gonna gossip,” she told him softly, her voice trembling at the idea. She’d been dealing with gossipy girls and judgmental adults since she began to show. She didn’t want Bobby shouldering that burden on top of everything else.

“Reggie’s parents already think I did this,” he reminded her.

“They never deserved Reggie,” grumbled Lucy.

“You and the baby deserve someone to look out for you,” Bobby said. “Reggie would agree.”

“I’ll think about it,” promised Lucy. She still had reservations and unresolved feelings about everything, but she knew Bobby was right about Reggie. He would want Lucy to have everything she needed to take care of their child and he would want Lucy to have someone she could depend on. Better that it was someone who had been his friend than a complete stranger.

“So are we skipping Christmas?” Bobby asked her, curious to see what her answer would be.

“Can we just stay right here and watch  _ A Charlie Brown Christmas _ ?” Lucy asked.

Bobby nodded. “Sounds like a good Christmas to me.”


	14. December 2020

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reggie's first Christmas as a ghost with the boys and Julie gives him his best gift yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Christmas duet inspired by Dolly Parton & Jimmy Fallon's version of "All I Want For Christmas Is You"

“Dude, the last time we played a Christmas show at school was the year Bobby joined the band,” Reggie pointed out as he, Luke, and Alex watched Julie and Flynn set up the equipment for their performance. Dirty Candy was just finishing their act, which meant it would be time for Julie and the Phantoms to go on.

“Did you see if he was in the crowd?” Alex asked as he tried with everything he had not to break out into dance.

“I thought you were checking!” exclaimed Reggie, now panic stricken. He’d been the one to insist the band perform during Los Feliz’s Christmas concert after he’d overheard Bobby talking about it on the phone with someone. It had been completely accidental, of course; it wasn’t as though Reggie had taken to spying on Bobby since Lucy crossed over. He’d just happened to be at the right place at the right time.

Rolling his eyes at Reggie and Alex, Luke disappeared and reappeared in seconds. "Bro, never send Alex to do anything with Dirty Candy performing," he admonished Reggie while motioning to Alex's failed attempt at not dancing.

"The feet want what the feet want," Alex answered with a one shouldered shrug and a grin.

Reggie grabbed Luke by the shirt and gave him a half hearted shake. "What about Bobby?"

Luke gently pried Reggie's hands from his shirt before nodding. "Yeah, that snake is here. Just him." Reggie deflated instantly, looking like a sad, kicked puppy. Luke's hands moved to the bassist's shoulders. "There's two empty seats on either side of him. She could still show up."

"Yeah, Reggie. You just need to have hope. It's Christmas, a time for miracles," Alex added as he placed a hand over one of Luke's. Reggie just gave a quiet nod and his two friends enveloped him in a hug. They had watched him struggle with his newfound knowledge that he had a daughter somewhere in the world while still coming to terms with the loss of the love of his life.

"Are you guys ready? We're about to… why is everyone hugging?" questioned Julie as she approached the trio of ghosts.

"No Regina," Luke answered.

Julie looked around quickly to make sure no one else was around before she joined in on the group hug. "We'll keep trying, Reggie," she assured her friend while her bandmates wrapped their arms around her. "I could talk to Trevor after our set? Or ask my dad if any of his contacts know her."

"See? We got you, man. You're gonna meet your daughter if it kills us," Luke told Reggie as they broke apart.

"Even if it means I cross over?" Reggie asked as he wiped at his face with the sleeve of his flannel shirt.

"Dude. It's fine. We'll just teach Flynn your parts," Luke said. He tried to sound playful but it was hard. If Reggie was right and meeting his daughter with Lucy was his unfinished business, he would be gone for good. Sure, he'd be with Lucy on the other side and probably even Julie's mom but he'd be leaving the band and his daughter behind. None of them would ever consider stopping Reggie from meeting Regina but they wouldn't not miss him, either.

Flynn approached them then, just as Carrie Wilson and her band sauntered off stage. "Let's see your little hologram band top that," Carrie said as she walked by, receiving a scathing look from Flynn.

"Remind me again why we have to play nice with her?" Flynn asked Julie.

"Because it's an easy way to find out about Reggie's daughter who is her kind of step-sister," replied Julie.

Flynn sighed dramatically and brushed her braids off her shoulder. "You know, your cute ghost band comes with a ton of baggage."

"Well my cute ghost band wants you to join it," Julie pointed out.

"Of course they do. Who wouldn't want my mad trumpet skills in their band?"

"Dude, we're not letting her play trumpet when she replaces Reggie, right?" Alex asked.

"Don't you mean 'if'? Hey!" asked Reggie as Luke said, "Bro, of course not. I'll teach her bass. Reggie won't need it."

Julie just shook her head at them before going out on stage while Flynn placed the fake hologram projector so that it looked convincing. She gave Julie a thumbs up before stepping back to watch from the wings while Julie played the opening chords to  _ All I Want for Christmas is You _ . She clicked on the fake projector as practiced and the three ghosts appeared on the stage with Julie.

Reggie scanned the crowd again once he was on stage. He hoped Bobby hadn't left after Carrie's performance. He found himself wondering if Bobby showed up for Regina the way he did for Carrie or if he just sent her money and stayed out of her life. The more he thought about it, the more Reggie wanted to know everything. All they knew for sure had come from Carrie - they called her Gina and she did some kind of photography. Carrie had made it clear that she wouldn't tell Julie anything else, using their age difference as the reason. If only he'd had more time with Lucy before she crossed over to ask her all his questions and to learn about the daughter he never got to know.

And then he saw her. Seated next to Bobby was a young woman who could have almost passed for Lucy's twin. Reggie froze when he saw her. He only snapped out of it when Luke came over to share his mic. He flashed Luke a grateful smile as he fell back into place with the band. Regina was so close and so far away at the same time but the only way she could see him was if he kept playing with the band. Reggie looked at Luke and mouthed the words 'Lucy's song' at him.

Luke nodded in understanding before joining Julie and pointing at some sheet music she had at her keyboard. When she nodded her understanding, Luke looked to Alex. The drummer nodded without needing any explanation.

"We're Julie and the Phantoms," Julie said to the crowd as the guys played the last notes of their current song and immediately went into a new tune. "And we have one more song for you tonight!"

The crowd cheered at her announcement and Luke flashed them his biggest smile. "This next one goes out to a super obnoxious friend of ours,” he told the crowd.

Reggie watched as Bobby seemed to tense up and look towards the side of the stage. Reggie knew who he was looking for; more often than not, Lucy would watch them play from backstage. Before Luke or Julie could jump in on vocals, Reggie found himself belting out the lyrics of the song. He'd spent enough Christmases with Lucy to have  _ Last Christmas _ memorized. He shrugged at Luke and Julie though they let him keep the lead for the song. As he sang about lost love, he kept his gaze on Regina and Bobby. His former friend had gone so pale Reggie wondered if he was going to faint. Regina watched the band with open fascination and Reggie wondered if she knew enough about him to recognize him. He wondered if she understood why they had chosen the song.

As Reggie watched his daughter and Bobby, he swore he saw a faint light surrounding them, swore that he saw Lucy's face singing along with the melancholic lyrics she had loved so dearly. He knew it couldn't be anything but wishful thinking on his part. He, Luke, and Alex had watched her cross over.

And then the song was done and they blinked out of existence only to reappear backstage. "Thanks for the save," Reggie said softly to Luke even as he crept back towards the stage.

Luke came up behind him and dropped an arm around his shoulders. "Bro. I got you."

"She looks so much like Lucy," Alex said as he appeared on Reggie's other side. The blond wrapped his arm around Reggie's shoulders as well. The trio stood there with Reggie sandwiched between them until Julie and Flynn found them.

"Was that her?" Julie asked excitedly. "You can tell she's related to you, Reggie."

Three heads turned in sync to look at Julie. "Really?" they all said at once.

"Let me see!" Flynn said as she passed through the boys without realizing. Julie pointed to where Bobby, Regina, and Carrie were all getting up from their seats. "Mr. Wilson looks like he's seen a ghost," mused Flynn as she watched.

"Because he just watched three ghosts from his past, Sweetie," pointed out Julie.

Flynn rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean!"

"Guys! Bobby's coming this way with Regina!" Luke exclaimed.

"What do we do? Do I look okay? How's my hair? Should I… should I channel my inner Ray?!" panicked Reggie. He quickly shoved his hands through his hair and tried to smooth out the wrinkles in his flannel shirt.

"Stop trying, it looks worse," sighed Alex before he fixed Reggie's hair for him.

"Your inner Ray?" questioned Julie. She raised her eyebrow at him. "You know what, I don't want to know."

"Speaking of your dad," Flynn whispered as she tugged on Julie's arm. The curly haired girl turned just in time to see her dad approaching with Carlos and her aunt in tow.

"Julie." 

Julie and Flynn turned in the opposite direction to see Carrie's family approaching them as well. "Hey, Mr. Wilson, hi Dad," she said weakly.

Ray Molina stopped, his smile faltering slightly. "Trevor. It's been a while."

Trevor Wilson, the man formerly known as Bobby, stopped short. "Ray. I was sorry to hear about Rose. You remember our daughter, Gina?"

Ray nodded, his expression softening. "You were just a baby when I saw you last. How are you? I heard you got into photography." Regina just nodded in reply.

"You know her?" Julie asked the question Reggie had just asked his friends. The bass player had started in on a rant about how Regina - not Gina - wasn’t Lucy and Bobby’s daughter only to stop mid sentence.

Ray nodded. "Your mothers were great friends."

"That makes sense," Reggie said as he cautiously approached. His fingers twitched restlessly as he fought the urge to reach out and touch her. He knew how odd a ghost touch could feel to the living. Flynn had only mentioned it a half dozen times since they had met her.

Julie tried not to react as he stood in front of Regina and Bobby. All she wanted to do was pull him into a hug as she observed him observing Regina. "I'm sorry I didn't get to go to the funeral," Julie heard Trevor say to her father. "I didn't want to make it a spectacle. Rose didn't deserve that."

"We appreciated it," answered Ray before he turned his attention back to Julie. "Are you ready to go mija?" 

"Actually, I was hoping I could talk with Julie. About her band," the older musician interjected quickly.

"Maybe another time, Trevor. We have family plans," Ray said quickly.

Julie nodded. "Another time would be better."

Trevor nodded before turning to Regina. "We should go, too. Carrie is waiting," he said to the young woman.

"Of course. It was a pleasure to meet you," Regina said to Julie and her family. She smiled at them before leaving with Bobby.

"I'll meet you at the car, Dad. Flynn and I have to return some things to the music room," Julie said quickly. She grabbed Flynn by the arm and pulled her away from her family. She knew the boys would follow when they were ready.

"That's my daughter," Reggie said when he was alone with Alex and Luke. "Lucy and I made such a perfect person." He was still in shock over getting so close to her. He knew he needed to see her again. He needed to find a way to be seen by her and to talk to her for more than the length of a song. There were a million things bouncing around in his head that he wanted to say and ask her. He wanted to be the one who got to introduce her to people as his daughter. "I missed so much."

"We'll figure this out," Luke assured him. He couldn't help but smile as he watched Reggie watch Regina. He looked absolutely awed and terrified and proud all at the same time. He had no doubts that Reggie had fallen in love with Regina the moment he saw her in the audience.

Alex nodded. "We can start by being there when Bobby talks with Julie." He wished they could do so much more for Reggie than they were doing.

"So, you're a dad now," Luke said. "Any idea what's up with Julie's dad? He really doesn't seem to like Bobby."

"Can you blame him? It's Bobby," Alex answered with disdain. 

"I'm sure we can find out. We'll have Julie ask," Luke continued.

"Maybe we should invite Bobby to practice," Reggie suggested to his friends as the three of them turned to follow after Julie and Flynn. "I want to talk to him, too."

As they walked away, discussing what they had in store for Bobby, they missed the wickedly smirking figure watching them from the shadows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone who has come along on this holiday journey with me! I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season!


End file.
